That pulled episode of Hannibal is now a series on the Internet, where no one is ever offended

Although tomorrow’s fourth episode of Hannibal was pulled in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings—after creator Bryan Fuller worried that lingering sensitivities could impinge on the escapist enjoyment of grisly serial killings—fans will still have a chance to see it online. Fuller and NBC have prepared what Fuller winkingly calls a “cannibalized” version of that episode, “Ceuf,” as a web series, one that will eventually feature the episode in its entirety, minus a few graphic scenes. That's because, as Fuller says in his video intro below, “Ceuf” provides a lot of important, necessary details on the developing relationship between Hannibal Lecter and Kacey Rohl’s Abigail Hobbs character—a relationship that eventually “becomes a load-bearing element” of the show.

Unfortunately, the main load that relationship is currently bearing is a plot about kids killing other kids that Fuller—in the wake of both Sandy Hook and more recent tragedies—decided may not be appropriate for his TV show about a man who eats people he’s murdered. So, it’s off to the coldly rational, digital void of the Internet, where “feelings” are just so many binary ones and zeroes.